Impact gun sound and broken AC belt

[Dustin Jackson]

Remote started the Tahoe and heard a terrible sound like 5 seconds straight of impact gun ratcheting, was hoping it was nearby work but I hopped in and it was hotter than hell (103F today). Popped the hood and the AC belt is snapped.

This has been something that's been building up for a couple years now, when the AC clutch engages after it's been siting it made a bad sound then all was good but I think the problem got bad enough that I need to address it now.

Is there anything I should be looking at in the front of the AC compressor that can fix this problem or am I looking at replacing my entire AC system now that I might have sent metal shavings through it?

 

[Dustin Jackson]

I know the first question is gonna be "Does the ac compressor turn?" and I am going to guess that since it broke the belt it's outside the realm of me turning it with my hand

 

[Dustin Jackson]

Confirmed the compressor turns while engaged and that the tensioner pulley is good.

Through a new belt on and all is well again, just not sure why the compressor has a hard time turning sometimes. I am running a deslugger

 

[B-train]

I had the same happen to me recently on my 2008. It sat for over a week, I replaced the cam position sensor and did a test start snd heard the same thing. Threw me off for a bit until I realized the compressor was spinning. No sound since. My guess is it gets a little corrosion if it's humid and doesn't get exercised.

 

[89Suburban]

Confirmed the compressor turns while engaged and that the tensioner pulley is good.

Through a new belt on and all is well again, just not sure why the compressor has a hard time turning sometimes. I am running a deslugger

All is well that ends well

 

[Dustin Jackson]

@89Suburban It will come back, I haven't fixed the root problem yet. It seems my ac compressor is very hard to turn after it sits for longer than 2 days and the belt takes the beating of that.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

@89Suburban It will come back, I haven't fixed the root problem yet. It seems my ac compressor is very hard to turn after it sits for longer than 2 days and the belt takes the beating of that.

Yes, I believe that your compressor is on its way out. Changing it now before it grenades may save you some replacement parts.

Also, change out your tensioner assembly, particularly if it may be the original. The spring does get weak over time with wear and heat. It is a relatively inexpensive part.

 

[rdezs]

Completely agree about the compressor. Pick up a complete o-ring and gasket kit for your AC lines.... Very inexpensive, blow them out most likely.

About 6 or 8 in from the air dryer/receiver, you'll see a large fitting. After you've evacuated the system break that fitting loose, and extract the expansion valve is inside the tube. Has a little filter on it..... Look for metal flakes there. If you find flakes, you'll want to blow out the condenser in front of your radiator. Or just replace it, they're only about $50.

On the tensioner, it's one of those things you want to stick with AC Delco. The aftermarket ones are garbage.

Plan on replacing the receiver/dryer, orifice tube. Also very inexpensive.

 

[j91z28d1]

search anti slugger or something like that on here. for a while there was a few ongoing threads about this.

for some reason oil will puddle in the compressor, and ac compressors are only designed to pump gas, not liquid. I've never looked into these kits, but it's something to keep the compressor from slugging at first startup.

 

[Dustin Jackson]

@j91z28d1 I am running one of those, doesn't seem to help this problem

 

[j91z28d1]

ahh. can you pop the hood and watch it while. it happens? byond just replacing the compressor, I wonder if it's trying to toss the belt. and you're hearing that.

 

[Dustin Jackson]

@j91z28d1 I can try that, it seems to happen at random times. I suspect it is more likely to do it if it sits for longer than a day.

Another thing I observed was the coolant T that goes between the water pump and coolant jug seems to be seeping coolant and I wonder if it's seeping onto the AC compressor causing the belt to be wet or possibly causing a bit of rust on the AC compressor clutch.

Not sure but the next time it sits for a couple days I will try to remember to observe AC compressor

 

[RET423]

I know you said the tensioner is good, but I would buy a new tensioner before doing anything else; they are cheap and the symptoms are precisely what you describe.

And I agree that the cheapo China tensioners fail quickly, sometimes the dealers stock the same garbage in a name brand box bit your odds are still better for getting a good one at the dealer.

2 bolts & 10 minutes to change, I would do that first

 

[Dustin Jackson]

@RET423 At this point I am open to anything. Can you walk me through the tensioner being the cause of the problem? Does it not apply enough pressure causing the belt to slip and then break once it catches?

 

[RET423]

It's not a pressure issue, it's an inconsistent pressure issue & sometimes a bad spot on the bushing that isn't noticeable spinning the pulley but when it lines up it sequence with compressor it starts jumping, that makes the tapping sound. A failing spring will also often feel fine when manually moving the tensioner but when it's resting in it's installed position the tension is lower due to fatigue at that position

If you're quick & the hood is already open you can jump out when the noise is happening and see that tensioner jumping violently, then when the noise quits it's just running smooth like normal

The cheap Amazon ones will fix it but I have never had one last a year on a daily driver, but you can get one for proof of concept as they usually work fine out of the box

 

[j91z28d1]

are the stretch belts from the never ones the same size. Just as test you might throw one on and remove the tensioner?